Automobile-fender.



W. A. LINQUIST. AUTOMOBILE FENDER.

APPLICATION FILED JANHZ, 1914.

1,105,671 Patented Aug/1, 1914.

4 SHEETS-SHBET 1.

rME NORRIS PETERS 60.. F'HoIv-LITHQ. WASHINGTON. L!v C.

W. A. LINQUIST. AUTOMOBILE FENDER. APPLICATION FILED 1mm, 1914.

1,105,671 P en ed Aug. 4, 191

4 SHEETS-$111311 2.

rnE NORRIS PE. fl-IPH #11070 LIHJCL, WASHINQION. h 1;.

W. A. LINQUIST. AUTOMOBILE FENDER.

APPLICATION FILED JAN. 2, 1014.

1,105,671 Pa ented Aug. 4, 1914.

4 SHEETS-*SHEB'I 3.

BY t

IT'TOR/VEYJ THE NORRIS PEN-5k; LU" PHDTO-LITHCL. WASHINGTON. D. L.

W. A. LINQUIST. AUTOMOBILE FENDER.

APPLIOATION FILED 1mm, 1914.

1 1 05,67 1 Patented Aug. 4, 1914.

4 SHEET$SIIBET 4.

M r/vsss 6 IN YEN TOR 5.6. MALI/7M L/A/QU/JT Mm W flrrofl/venr ruz NORRIS PETE/"b 60.. FfIOTO-LIYIIOH WASHINGION. u L,

UNITED S ATES WILLIAM A. LINGUIST, OF MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA.

AUTOMOBILE-FENDER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 4, 1914:.

Application filed January 2, 1914. Serial No. 809,987.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, WVILLIAM A. LINQUIST, a citizen of the United States, residing at Minneapolis, in the county of Hennepin and State of Minnesota, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Automobile-Fenders; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will on able others skilled in the art to which it an pertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates particularly to automobile fenders, and has for its object to simplify the construction and improve the operation thereof.

Generally stated, the invention consists of the novel devices and combinations of devices hereinafter described and defined in the claims.

Particularly, the invention is designed as an improvement on that type of automatic fenders disclosed and claimed in my patents identified as follows, to wit: No. 1,009,158, of date, November 21, 1911, No. 1,033,4125, of date, July 23rd, 1912, and No. 1,085,988, of date, February 3, 1914.

In the several forms of the fender which I have devised, the fender is mounted for vertical movements, is normally held in a raised position, and arranged to be automatically tripped by pressure against a forwardly springpressed buffer or tripping bar located in front or at the front of the fender. Usually,lhave also provided means for tripping the fender at will, independ' ently of the buffer or tripping bar.

The salient feature of the present invention consists in incorporating the buffer or tripping bar as a part of the fender frame proper, and this is conveniently done by utilizing the lower forwardly projecting transversely extended bar of the fender frame proper, as the said buffer or tripping bar.

The present invention, however, also includes certain other important features of construction, all of which, as well as the said broad feature above indicated, will be hereinafter described and defined in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings which illustrate the invention, like characters indicate like parts throughout the several views.

Referring to the drawings, Figure 1 is a front elevation showing the improved fender applied to an automobile; Fig. Qis a side elevation showing the front portion of an automobile and the improved fender applied thereto, some parts being sectioned the full and dotted lines, respectively, illustrating the normal raised and the lowered position of the main fender; Fig. 3 is a vertical section taken approximately on the line :12 m of Fig. 1 Fig. 4 is a detail in section taken approximately on the line of a of Fig. 1; and Fig. 5 is a detail in section on the same line as Fig. 4, illustrating a slightly modified construction of certain of the parts.

Of the parts of the automobile, the numeral 1 indicates the front wheels, the numeral 2 the front axle, the numeral 3 the front springs and the numeral l the frame bars, which are pivotally connected at their front ends to the front ends of the spring 3 in the customary way.

The numeral 5 indicates the radiator and engine jacket or housing, and the numeral 6 the lamp brackets, which latter support the lamps 7.

All of the parts so far described are, or may be assumed to be of well known or standard construction. It is important, however, to note that the frame bars 1 project in front of the front axle and approxi mately to the front portions of the front wheels. This feature, however, is also found in almost all commercial automobiles.

For the attachment of the fender to the automobile, and to support the same with freedom for vertical movements, I employ vertically extended fender guides, preferably in the form of long upright sleeves 9, which, at their upper ends, are provided with flanges 10 that are rigidly bolted to coupling brackets 11. The coupling brackets 11 have vertical flanges that are detachably secured by bolts 12 to vertical flanges of anchor brackets 13, which, in turn, are rigidly but detachably secured to the forwardly projecting ends of the frame bars 4, by means of clamping bolts 14 and a cooperating clamping plate 15. The coupling device just described adapts the fender supporting guides 9 to be applied to any of the various different types of automobiles in which the forwardly projecting bars vary in size and exact form. As preferably constructed, the fender proper is carried by vertically movable plungers or bars 16, of tubular form, that are arranged to move vertically through the vertical sleeves or guides 9 and are much longer than the said sleeves,

so that they project both at their upper and lower ends with freedom for the required vertically movable fender. Rigidly secured by means of undesignated pins or bolts to the lower ends of the plungers 16 are forwardly projecting shoes 17 having forwardly and upwardly extended lower sur faces that adapt them to slide over the ground or road without being caught in small holes or crevices. The tubular plung ers 16 are yieldinglypressed downward,both by gravity and by coiled springs 18, which springs are placed within the said plungers with their lower ends reacting against the hubs or solid plugs of the shoes 17 and with their upper ends reacting against resistance blocks 19 secured to anchoring pins 20, which latter work through vertical slots 21 in the said plungers 16, and at their ends are seated in the upper portions of the guide sleeves 9. Plugs 22 are preferably placed in the upper ends of the plungers l6 and are arranged to engage with rubber or other yielding abutinents 23, placed within the said plungers and seated on the resistance blocks 19. The arrangement is such that when, the plungers are released and allowed to drop, the shoes 17 will engage the ground under ordinary conditions, or unless the said shoe should happen to be dropped over a depression, in which case the downward movement of the plunger-s and fender would be stopped by the buffers 23. The lower ends of the guide sleeves 9 are connected to the front axle 2 by metallic straps or brace bars 24.. Also, the lower end portions of the said guide sleeves 9 are tied together and rigidly spaced by a cross tie rod 25 having threaded nut-equipped ends shown as directly connected to lugs 26 on the lower ends of the said sleeves. Also, as shown, the front ends of the brace bars 24 are connected to the lugs 26 by the ends of the said tie bolt 25.

The plungers 16 are adapted to be held in raised positions, against the tension of the springs 18, by means of lock, tripping or retaining dogs 27 secured to the ends of a rock shaft 28 journaled in suitable bearings on the front intermediate portions of the sleeves 9. The upper ends of these dogs 27 work through clearance passages in the front faces of the sleeves 9 and are engageable with notches 2a in. the front face of each of the plungers 16. Preferably, there are several of these notches 29, so that the plungers, and hence, the fender, may be set in one of sev eral differentraised positions. The lock dogs 27 are normally held operative by springs 30, best shown in Fig. 4., and their depending ends are adapted to be engaged by tripping heads 31 secured to the rear ends of'the tripping bolts 32 mounted to slide in suitable bearings on the tops of the shoes 17. The tripping bolts 32 are yieldingly pressed forward by coiled sprin 's 33, which, as shown, surround the same, and are in turn surrounded by tubular casings 34. The tripping heads 31 have such vertical extension that they are alined for engagement with depending ends of the tripping dogs 27 in either one of the two or several raised positions of the fender plunger-s 1.6.

The fender proper, or in other words, the primary elenient of the fender, is made up of a marginal frame 35 and a filler in the form of a netting 36 secured thereto. The marginal frame 35 is preferably constructed from wrought iron or steel pipe or tubing, and is so bent that when viewed from the front, it has a transversely elongated rectangular form, while when viewed from the side or edgewise, it has an approximately L-shape with its lower transverse bar projected forward of the upright portions thereof and of the netting 36. Here, it is important to note that this transversely extended lower bar of the marginal frame 35 is connected to the forwardly projected ends of the tripping bolts 32, so that it is utilized as a buffer or tripping bar for releasing the fender carrying plungers l6 automatically, whenever the said bar strikes an object or obstruction with sufficient force to overcome the tension of the comparatively light coiled springs 33.

The upper transverse bar of the marginal fender frame 35 is seated for oscillatory and for vertical movements in the yoke-like portions 37 0f keeper brackets 38 that are rigidly secured to the upper ends of each of the fender carrying plungers 16. Both oscillatory and vertical movements of the upper bar of the said frame 35 are made necessary when the lower transverse bar thereof is forced inward to cause the bolts 32 and tripping heads 31 to trip the dogs 27 and release the plunger 16. @bviously, when either one of the dogs 27 is given a releasing movement, the other dog will partake of the same movementbecause both dogs are secured. to the common rock shaft 28. This is important because sometimes the force of a blow will be received entirely by one of the tripping bolts For this reason, the connections between the front ends of the tripping bolts 32 and the lower transverse bar of the frame 35 are made slightly flexible, and this may be done in a good many different ways. F or instance, in all of the views, U-shaped straps 33 embrace the lower bars of the said frame 35 and are secured to heads of the tripping bolts 32 by nut-equipped bolts 40. In all of the views, except Fig. 5, the heads 32 are rigid on the front ends of the bolts 32, but in the construction illustrated in Fig. 5, the said heads 32 are connected to the bolts 32 by pivot joints 32. In prac tice, there will usually be sufficient springin the parts to permitthe one. trippingbolt 32 to move ahead of the other when the strain comes on one side of the fender, even without the pivotal connectionsat 32", but the said pivotal connections may be employed whenever found desirable.

To prevent a person or object from being thrown over the top of the fender proper when the latter is lowered into the position indicated by dotted lines in Fig. 2, I preferably provide a supplemental or secomlary fender comprising a marginal rectangular fran'ie il and a netting -12 secured thereto. The cross section of this frame of this supplemental fender is best indiiated in Figs. and 4t, and its outline is indicated by dotted lines in Fig. l. The lower bar of the frame 4-1 thereof is shown as provided with rigidly secured lugs 13 that are hinged to the ver tical flanges of the brackets 11, so that when the engine is to be cranked, the said supplemental fender may be turned forward and downward out of the way. Normally, the

supplen'iental fender is held in an operative position, preferably by spring latches 4: 1- that engage notches in the vertical flanges of the said brackets 11. r

The manner in which the fender will be automatically tripped and dropped whenever it should strike a person or other obstacle in its line of travel, is obvious from the foregoing description. Preferably, I provide means whereby the fender may also be tripped at the will of the operator or chauffeur. The connections for this purpose, as shown, comprise a foot piece 15, a bell crank 16 and tripping cable 47, which lat ter is connected to a short arm 48 on the rock shaft 28. I also preferably provide means whereby the fender, after it has been tripped and dropped, may be raised and re stored to normal position by the operator or chauffeur from his seat. These connections comprise a Windlass shaft 49 mounted in suitable bearings on the footboard of the automobile and adapted to be operated by a pawl-equipped lever 50 and cooperating ratchet wheel on the said shaft. The shaft 49 is connected by a cable 51 to the shoes 17 on the lower ends of the fender carrying plungers 16. This cable 51 is, as shown, guided by sheaves 52 on the automobile frame, and sheaves 53 on the plunger guiding sleeves 9. Normally, the Windlass shaft 49 will be disconnected from the lever 50 and free to rotate, so that the fender may be dropped when released from the retaining dogs 27. Preferably, I also employ means whereby, when the fender is tripped and dropped, it will cause the brakes of the automobile to be automatically set and the sparking circuit of the engine to be auto matically broken; but as these features constitute no part of the present invention and are substantially like those disclosed and claimed in my prior Patent No. 1,033,425,

the said parts are only briefly noted as follows: The numeral 54 indicates the brake lever, which is connected to the cable 51 by a branch cable 51, and is attached to an electrical contact 55 that normally engages with fixed contacts 56 of the sparking circuit, but is adapted to be moved out of engagement therewith when the fender is dropped. In the branch cable 51 is interposed a spring 51 which corresponds to the spring 48 interposed in the cable 44 of my said Patent 1,033,425. It will be noted that the supplemental fender d14t2 is applied to the same supports which carry the main fender, so that it will be removed from the automobile with the main fender and applied to the automobile with the said main fender. Other wise stated, the main and auxiliary fenders are removable as a self-contained structure in which the main and. supplemental fenders imiintain the proper relative adjustments. No readjustment or positioning of the main and supplemental fenders in respect to each other is, therefore, required in the operation of applying the fender attachment to the automobile.

It will, of course, be understood that the term automobile is herein used in a broad sense to include all motor or power propelled vehicles. It will be understood that the term plungcrs as applied to the vertically movable fender su morting elements 16, and the term bolt as applied to the tripping elements 32, are used in a broad and liberal sense to cover any kind of sliding, reciprocating or vibratory elements pcrforming similar functions.

What I claim is:

1. A fender attachn'icnt comprising plunger guides, vertically movable plungers supported by said guides, plunger securing devices for holding said plungers in a raised position, and a fender frame provided with a filler and carried by said plungers, and having a part adapted to yield rearwardly and trip said plunger supporting devices.

2. The combination with an automobile f 'ame, of fender supporting guides secured thereto, fender supporting plungers movable vertically through said guides, dogs applied to one of the said members and engageable with the other to hold said plungers raised, and a fender frame carried by said plungcrs and having its lower transverse bar mounted for rearward movements and provided with means for tripping said dogs to release said plungcrs.

3. A fender attachment comprising plunger guides, plungers supported for vertical movements, plunger securing devices for holding said plungers in a raised position, forwardly projecting shoes applied to the lower ends of said plungers, dogs for tripping said plunger securing devices, mounted on said shoes, and a fender frame having a filler, the said frame being supported at its lower portion by said dogs, and means supporting the upper portion of said fender frame from the upper portions of said plungers.

4;. The combination with an automobile frame, of fender supporting guides secured thereto, fender supporting plungers supported for vertical movements by said guides. dogs applied to one of saidmembers and engageable with the other to hold said plungers raised, forwardly projecting shoes appliedto the lower ends of said plungers, forwardly spring-pressed dog tripping bolts mounted on said shoes, and a fender frame having a filler, said frame having its lower bar supported by said tripping bolts, and means on the upper ends of said plungers for engaging the upper bar of said fender frame and supporting and guiding the same.

5. The combination with a nautomobile frame, of fender supporting guides secured thereto, fender supporting plungers held for vertical movements by said guides, dogs applied to said guides and engageable with said plungers to normally hold the same raised, forwardly projecting shoes applied to the lower ends of said plungers, forwardly spring-pressed dog tripping bolts mounted on said shoes, an approximately rectangular fender frame provided with a filler and having its lower bar supported'by the front ends of said tripping bolts, and brackets on the upper ends of said plungers engaging the upper bar of said fender frame and supporting the same with freedom for pivotal and vertical movements.

6. A fender attachment for automobiles comprising vertical guides, dowmvardly spring-pressed plungers supported for vertical movements by said guides, forwardly projecting shoes applied to the lower ends of said plungers, dogs pivotally secured to said guides and engageable with said plungers to hold the same raised in several difspring-pressed tripping bolts mounted on said shoes, an approximately rectangular fender frame provided with a filler and having its lower bar connected to the fender ends of said tripping bolts, and means on the upper ends of said plungers engaging the upper bar of said fender and supporting the same with freedom for pivotal and slight vertical movements.

7. A fender attachment for automobiles comprising vertical guides, downwardly spring-pressed plungers supported for vertical movements by said guides, forwardly projecting shoes applied to the lower ends ing at their rear ends vertically extended heads engageable with said bolts in the several raised positions ofsaid plungers, an approximately rectangular fender frame provided with a filler and having its lower bar connected to the fender ends of said tripping-bolts, and means on the upper ends of said plungers engaging the upper bar of said fender and supporting the same with freedom for pivotal and slight vertical movements.

8. A fender attachment comprising fender supports having means for detachably securing the same to the frame of an automobile, of a main fender supported for vertical movements by said fender supports, and a supplemental fender pivotally attached to said fender supports for forward and rearward swinging movements, respectively, from and to an operative position, the said supplemental fender being removable from and applicable to the automobile with the said main fender.

9. The combination with an automobile, of a main fender supported from said automobile for vertical movements to and from an operative position, and a pivotally mounted supplemental fender carried byotheautomobile, the said supplemental fender being capable of forward and rearward swinging movements, respectively, from and to an operative position, and the said supplemental fender occupying a position which is above the said main fender when the latter is dropped to an operative position.

10. A fender attachment comprising fender guides, plungers guided for vertical movements by said guides, plunger securing.

devices for holding said fender in a raised position, a fender carried vertically by said plungers and having a forwardly pressed portion that is movable rearwardly to trip said plunger securing devices.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

WILLIAM A. LINQUIST.

Witnesses BERNIOE G. WHEELER, HARRY D. Kineoiui;

Eopies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. '0." 

